Disc brakes in high performance or racing-type overland vehicles are subject to conditions of frequent and demanding use. As a consequence, the hydraulic or actuating fluid may become heated to a point where it may lose some of its properties of power transference. Under such circumstances, the brakes may fail and the safety of the driver, as well as other drivers, may be compromised.
There are a number of prior-art, disc-brake caliper cooling devices. Some of the prior-art cooling devices are designed to cool the friction elements of the disc-brake calipers by an auxiliary cooling system. Such devices are illustrated in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,972,353; 3,915,262; and 4,815,573 which issued to North et al., Klaue, and Miyata, respectively. These designs do not address heating of the actuating fluid directly, and in brakes of this type catastrophic heating of the brake fluid may still occur.
Other prior-art devices cool the actuating fluid by adding cooling means directly to the hydraulic circuit. In such a design, a failure of the cooling means may prevent the brakes from operating properly since the brakes and the cooling means are a part of the same system. Additionally, the incorporation of a cooling means in the hydraulic circuit may be unduly complex or introduce other technical difficulties into the brake system.
Accordingly, a need has developed for a disc brake caliper wherein auxiliary cooling of the actuating fluid occurs, thereby avoiding the aforementioned difficulties. In particular, there is a need for a disc-brake caliper wherein the disc-brake fluid is cooled and such cooling is independent of the hydraulic circuit which actuates the brakes.